[joshuajaeseo]

I recently got an assignment in my English class tying into our unit on All Quiet on the Western Front. Here are the directions.

Goal: To answer the question, "What is worth fighting for?" or "Is war worth the sacrifice?" and wrestle with the following Statement of Inquiry:

[I]Depending on their contexts (place,time,experiences,etc), soldiers and civilians express different perspectives on the effects of war through a variety of forms./I]

Role: You are a writer or artist-in-residence for a city government.

Audience: The Veteran's Association of Seattle

Situation: The challenge involves representing your perspective on war in a way that reflects your knowledge and understanding of at least four other creative responses to war.

Product: You will create a piece of public art in order to show your perspective on war and develop the press release that explains your piece, perspective, and influence. (In other words, you will write a rationale explaining these things, and you must clearly show how All Quiet on the Western Front- as well as a least three other creative responses studied in class- have influenced your piece.)

I have a general idea of what I want my project to look like. When reading autobiographies and anecdotes from soldiers, the thing that stuck with me were pictures of family. Even in a brutal war where savage killing occurs, the humane aspect remains on both sides of the conflict. I can't quite articulate it, but the scene of a soldier looking at pictures of their family in a war zone leaves the deepest impression on me.

My idea is to depict a battlefield with intense fighting going on, and on opposite sides are nearly identical soldiers looking at their family photos. All made out of paper, of course.

The reason for my rambling on the forum is because I would like the help of this community. It seems to me that there is a sizable veteran presence on the forum, and your assistance would be invaluable to me. Here are the things that I would like to know.

1. Conditions on the battlefield.
2. Anecdotes that could add to my knowledge
3. Military equipment, uniforms, etc. (I don't know which war I want to depict. The unit is on a book set in World War 1 so that would be the obvious choice. However, my grandfather fought in the Vietnam War, and I obviously feel a connection to the Korean War. I'll have to decide soon though.)

Please post something if you feel it would help me with this project, and I express my deep appreciation and gratitude for those who have served. Reading All Quiet on the Western Front and studying PTSD has really opened my eyes to the sacrifice veterans have made.